ESPN Writer Apologizes to One of the Most Dangerous Metro Areas in America. But Why?
ESPN, Media Gossip/Musings January 14th. 2008, 10:48am
“… the east side of Florence, a downtrodden section of a downtrodden city littered by double-wide trailers, wayward drug dealers and the shattered Budweiser bottles, used condoms, McDonald’s wrappers and crumpled newspapers that seem to pock each dirt road and cement walkway … a city long ago deserted by hope.” Not a description of Baghdad, Detroit, or even Oakland. But Florence, South Carolina! At least that’s how ESPN’s Jeff Pearlman saw it. Then the town got angry, lit up the comments section of Pearlman’s story, and the Mayor forced the former SI writer to apologize. And he did (the paper even printed the email exchange)! But why? The quotes in the story seem to back up Pearlman’s labels, and in 2007, the Florence metro area was ranked as one of the most dangerous in America. We’ve emailed Pearlman seeking comment on this bizarre situation, and if we hear back, we’ll post an update.
ESPN columnist stirs up Florence community (SC Now)
The rise and fall of Clayton Holmes (Page 2)
City Crime Rankings by Population Group (Morgan Quitno)
24 Responses to “ESPN Writer Apologizes to One of the Most Dangerous Metro Areas in America. But Why?”
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January 14th, 2008 at 10:50 AM
Jeff Pearlman needs to stay the hell out of my living room.
January 14th, 2008 at 10:55 AM
I don’t understand the apology either. I like they way Holmes admitted he was a dead beat dad at the end.
January 14th, 2008 at 10:57 AM
Damn, I had my money on Detroit with that description.
Florence sounds like a hell of a place. Who’s going with me?!
January 14th, 2008 at 11:02 AM
I was thinking Columbia, Mo.
January 14th, 2008 at 11:03 AM
By the way, Brick is not a metro area, it is a sprawling suburban nightmare of split levels, ranches, and more strip malls then you can believe. It is the model of why you want to avoid the burbs.
January 14th, 2008 at 11:13 AM
C’mon, Florence. It’s okay to admit that your town sucks. Hilton Head is a popular beach destination for those of us in Atlanta, and everyone knows you pee on your dashboard rather than stop in Florence.
January 14th, 2008 at 11:18 AM
Sweet! B-More is #12 and DC is #19. With some solid recruiting and attention to detail, I think we can crack the top 10.
Funny how folks are all up in arms about getting a writer to apologize for calling their shithole town a shithole, rather than actually cleaning up the aforementioned shithole.
January 14th, 2008 at 11:19 AM
Pearlman says that it was a non-apology apology.
January 14th, 2008 at 11:20 AM
See #24th safest on list: “Freda Felcher? From Cranston?”
January 14th, 2008 at 11:20 AM
Looks like a back-handed apology to me.
January 14th, 2008 at 11:21 AM
I lived in Florence for 12 years and it’s not a bad place. The biggest problem is that the airport (like most airports) is on the wrong side of town and it gives a bad first impression. There are a lot worse places to live in the country.
January 14th, 2008 at 11:22 AM
That description fits my front yard the day after the Indy 500.
January 14th, 2008 at 11:24 AM
For reasons I will not go into, I can personally vouch for Richmond, VA being on this list.
January 14th, 2008 at 11:24 AM
Pearlman is a straight-up kook.
Also, how does the mayor “force” an apology out of him?
January 14th, 2008 at 11:25 AM
It’s just interesting because–all of you recall who wrote the infamous John Rocker article, right? I guess he thinks the only difference between Rocker’s New York and the Florence, S.C. is that Florence has fewer foreigners and crack whores with AIDS on the subways.
(I am not defending John Rocker)
January 14th, 2008 at 11:38 AM
Wow Oakland’s 7th? I thought it got a lifetime achievement award for crime so it could no longer be included.
The Oakland Police Department has put out a “CrimeView” website where you can find out what crimes are reported in certain neighborhoods within the last 90 days.
have some fun with it, and then tell me if you ever want to be in any of the cities that are ranked more violent than Oakland
January 14th, 2008 at 11:46 AM
Philly #5 on the list. it is INSANE here. over 450 murders last year. The murder rate has been on the rise every year the past few years. Dont be surprised to see philly #1 soon. it is awful here.
January 14th, 2008 at 11:48 AM
Attaboy, Ohio! 3 in the top 20
January 14th, 2008 at 12:43 PM
Cleveland at seven? That’s all kinds of bullshit. The suburbs are just fine thank you.
January 14th, 2008 at 1:03 PM
gonzo, I will give you my girlfriends number and if you can just repeat that statement to her that would be greatly appreciated. The woman wants to leave Arlington VA to live in Philly. Who does that?
January 14th, 2008 at 1:16 PM
“You have four kids with four women.” Well someone had to set the mark for Travis Henry to leap way over.
January 14th, 2008 at 2:41 PM
I’ve been to a ton of these cities and I don’t get how Oakland has the rep it has or how bad it actually is. It’s damn the most famous hood ass town, I wonder how that came to be? I honestly don’t know? And Oakland has so much going for it, I have to believe it will get better some day (ie weather, location, educated population, etc)
January 14th, 2008 at 2:58 PM
Arlington to Philly? That’s like the Bahamas to Bangladesh.
January 15th, 2008 at 1:00 AM
I know Pearlman is kind of a “blog” guy. Like, he gives interviews, takes emails, can ramble off a few URLs… but that was pretty weak, right? I’ve taken issue with some of Jeff’s writing before, most notably a story he wrote about Bonds in support of his book. The Rocker thing was kind of, ahem, not great also.
But my point here is, just because a writer responds to his emails doesn’t mean you have to back him on everything he writes, right? Pearlman’s talented. Stirring up emotion is his thing. He does it to me. But I don’t need homerism in my TBL. I like reading what a dick Len Pasquarelli was to that Redskins blogger. But it’s not all about taking the bad guys down, and propping the “good” guys up. At least not for me. What is this, FOX News?